Roads Untraveled
by Kuma the wolf alchemist
Summary: After purchasing a new Celestial Key, Lucy is asked to go on a mission that requires her to leave Fairy Tail behind and help defend a world that she's not a part of. If she chooses not to, Earthland will be in danger. It is up to her to work side-by-side with new comrades to save the people she has come to call her family, as well as the rest of her world. Semi-AU, eventual GraLu
1. Chapter 1

[Roads Untraveled]

Summary: After purchasing a new Celestial Key, Lucy is asked to go on a mission that requires her to leave Fairy Tail behind and help defend a world that she's not a part of. If she chooses not to, Earthland will be in danger. It is up to her to work side-by-side with new comrades to save the people she has come to call her family, as well as the rest of her world. Semi-AU, possibly eventual Lucy/Gray

~.~.~

"Lucy, do we have to go shopping? Why can't we just go back to the guild?" Natsu whined, trudging behind the blond mage.

"I just want to go by the magic shop! I heard that the one here always has amazing stuff," Lucy replied, determined to get a trinket to make up for their horrible mission. For the life of her she couldn't understand why Natsu felt the urge to destroy everything he came in contact with. She was grateful that neither Gray nor Erza came with them on the mission, because that would mean more destruction. More destruction meant less money, because money would have to go to paying for the damages. Less money meant she wouldn't be able to pay her rent.

When the two arrived at the small magic shop Lucy quickly ducked inside, looking though all the magical items and keeping a look out for any celestial keys.

"Lucy, look at this!" Natsu shouted for across the store. Lucy turned to see what the Dragon Slayer had found and paled. In his hands was a double 'D' bra. "It even changes colors!"

"Natsu put that down!" She raced over to snatch it out of his hands. "You don't just do stuff like that!"

"Aw Lucy, you're no fun!" Happy whined from Natsu's shoulder.

Lucy sighed, could these two be any more childish? They could, and if she wanted to leave on good terms with the store owner she knew she needed the two to leave. "You know, you two don't need to stick around. You can meet me at the train station if you want."

"Are you sure?" Natsu asked, hesitant to leave his partner.

"I'm sure! I won't be much longer here," It took her a bit to convince the two, but when she finally got them to leave she breathed a sigh of relief. "Finally I can look in peace."

She took her time going through the items, trying out a new magical whip, but finding she liked the one she had presently much more. Though she was interested in the many items, what she really wanted to see were keys.

"Can I help you Ms.?" A woman in her mid-thirties questioned, approaching Lucy.

"Yes, do you have any celestial keys?" Lucy asked the brunette.

"We do have one; however it is rather…odd."

"Odd?" Lucy caught sight of her name tag before the woman turned away from her- Angie was her name, and underneath her name was written: store owner. "What's odd about it?"

Angie led her to the cashier counter and ducked behind it- rummaging through a box. She brought out a purple case that held a silver key within it. Lucy inspected the symbol on the key- the symbol was three purple bars, as if it was a gate. Lucy racked her brain, trying to think of what this key could be, but she was drawing a blank. She had no clue what this key did.

"I've carried many Celestial Keys in my store, and never have a seen a key like this," Angie explained.

Lucy hummed, while picking up the key. She was curious about the key and was suddenly determined to figure out what it did. "I'll take it."

"Are you sure?" Angie asked. "It might not be useful in combat or anything."

"I'm sure," Lucy replied. "I'm curious to see what this does." To her surprise, the key did not cost as much as she thought it would- only 15,000 Jewel; she had hit the jackpot. Lucy almost skipped out the store, because she was so happy about finding a key and it was an added bonus that it did not cost much.

"Did you find anything?" Natsu questioned when she approached them at the train station.

"Yep, I found a new key!" She replied, showing him the new key that was latched on to her ring with the others she had acquired.

"What's it do?" Happy asked.

"Well, I'm not sure right now, but as soon as I get home I'm going to find out!"

"Cool, make sure to tell us what spirit it is when you find out! Maybe it'll be a cool spirit like Loke," Natsu said, getting excited about possibly sparing with the new spirit.

"Or maybe it'll be a fish spirit!" Happy added.

Lucy couldn't help but roll her eyes. "I have a feeling that it won't be either of those things."

* * *

As soon as Lucy got back into town she rushed home to figure out what her new key did. She flipped through the many books she had on Celestial Keys, however two hours later she still did not have a clue what the key did. Usually, she knew the name of the spirit attached to the key, so she could simply summon it and make a contract. This one was tricky, however, because she did not know the name of the spirit.

Lucy sighed, staring at the key in her hands dejectedly. She had been excited to get it, but now she was at a crossroads. How could she attempt to summon something when she didn't know its name? She had two choices: try to use it or sell it to the magic shop in town.  
"I know, I'll ask Crux!" She said to herself, whipping out the key. She summoned the old cross shaped spirit with a smile. "Hey! I had a quick question."  
"What can I do for you Ms. Lucy?" The spirit asked.  
Lucy held out the key so he could see it. "I've never seen, nor read about a key like this. What does it do?"  
Crux tipped to the side to process the question. To anyone else, Crux looked like he was sleeping, but Lucy knew better. A few minutes later he snapped awake.  
"The key is called Gate Keeper; however what it does is unknown to me," Crux explained. "All I could come up with is that it is a blank key."

"Blank key?"

"Yes, as in there is no particular spirit attached to it," He replied.

Crux had nothing more to stay about the key so Lucy closed his gate. She sighed, looking down at the mysterious key. "I guess I could try using it." She took a deep breath, holding the key out. "Well here goes nothing. Open: Gate Keeper!"

A bright, gold light shot from tip of the key- causing Lucy to stumble back from the sudden force. When the bright light was gone, before her stood a silver door that went up to the ceiling of her apartment and took up almost all the open space she had in her living room.

"Crux was right; Gate Keeper is different from the others…" Lucy whispered, walking towards the double door gate. "Do I sign a contract with it?" She placed her hands on the cool steel of the door, yanking the circular handles. The door slowly creaked open to reveal nothing but darkness. Cautiously, she reached her hand into the void, but felt nothing but open space. She needed to know more about the key she now possessed- even if that meant stepping through a door that possibly led to nowhere special. "Maybe it's a key to the Celestial Spirit World?"

Lucy decided not to waste any more time wondering what the gate did; if she was going to find more information about the gate she would have to go inside. She took a deep breath before walking through the door; she was surrounded by darkness, but as she walked she began to see a light grow at the end. She began to walk faster and faster, until she was sprinting towards the end- excited to see what was coming.

"Where am I?" She asked herself, fear creeping into her voice. She found herself in an ally way, but she could see a street crowded with people. She was definitely not in the Celestial Spirit World nor was she on Earthland. She was also sure she was not in Edolas. Behind her, Gate Keeper slammed shut and disappeared. "Hey, come back!" She took the key off her belt and attempted to summon it back: "Open: Gate Keeper!"

The iron gate did not appear; before her continued to stand a brick wall. She tried once more, but Gate Keeper refused to come back. She was trapped. To keep herself from having a panic attack she decided to go out onto the main street which she regretted the moments she stepped foot onto it. She was swept into the hustle and bustle of the unknown city, not knowing where she was going, but she couldn't help but take the scenery in. She walked past shops and restaurants; and soon found herself in a park.

"Does that fountain have faces on it?" She muttered to herself, looking at the strange invention. Children splashed in the water that pooled in between the two tall fountains that had faces on the screens. The expressions ranged from happy to sad, until finally they squirted water of their mouths. "That's interesting."

The city was unlike any she had ever been to. The technology was advanced and she could not sense any magical energy around her. Not far from the fountains was a stand that had maps for free as well as small key chains and trinkets for sale. Lucy picked up a map- scanning it to try and see if she could make sense of where she was. "Chicago?" She muttered, clutching the paper in her hands tightly. "What the heck is Chicago, Illinois?"


	2. Chapter 2

[Roads Untraveled]

Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail, however the OCs within this story are mine

* * *

Lucy took deep breaths to keep from having a total melt down. The city's spot on the map looked nothing like anything in Fiore. Was she possibly on the other side of the world? She quickly scratched that hypothesis out- if she was on the other side of her world she would still be able to feel magic in the air. In this world if felt like there was not any to begin with. The technology was also much more advanced than anything in her world.

"Chicago, Illinois…" She muttered, the words feeling strange on her tongue. Never had she heard such a weird name. On the back of the paper was a map of a larger area of land with a red mark dotting where the city stood. "The United States of America."

She quickly folded up the map and put it in the pocket of her skirt. She needed to find a way out of this foreign land. She walked out of the park (a sign near her called it Millennium Park) and began power walking down the sidewalk. The noises and crowed began to make her dizzy- her senses being overloaded.

"Lucy Heartfilia!"

Lucy paused at the sound of her name, whirling around to see who was shouting her name. Behind her stood a girl around her age, who held a grim expression. She was dressed in a simple pair of jean shorts, a gray and white stripped tank-top, and sneakers. The caramel skin toned girl suddenly grabbed Lucy's arm and began to drag her off the busy sidewalk.

"What are you doing?" Lucy shouted, trying to rip her arm away from the girl, but the grip on her arm only tightened. The girl was stronger than she looked. Lucy soon found herself in an apartment building not far from the park she had left only a few minutes ago. Lucy was finally able to break the girl's grip, before she was forced into an elevator. "Why should I follow you?"

The girl's green eyes flashed in annoyance. "Because if you don't you won't know why you're here." Lucy scowled, not wanting to trust the girl. The girl rolled her eyes at Lucy's expression. "Honestly, I don't care if you follow me or not. I'm just trying to help you out and you looked like you were going to pass out from emotional overload."

The girl stepped onto the elevator, staring at her as if she had two choices: leave and get lost in the city or come and get answers. Lucy decided that it would be best to follow the girl- not wanting to go back on those crowded streets again.

The elevator rode the two up to the tenth floor. The apartment was not anything fancy, but it was cozy. The teen led her to apartment number 1010- a two bedroom, two bathroom apartment with a beautiful view of a lake.

"This view is amazing," The blond said, admiring the shimmering lake. She was also surprised such a young girl could afford a place such as this. It had to be expensive. "Is this your apartment?"

"No, this is my brother's apartment. He's currently at work and won't be back for a while so this is the safest place to go to talk," taking a seat at the kitchen table that sat in front of the large window giving the view of the lake.

"By the way what's your name?" Lucy questioned, moving to sit across from the brown haired girl. "And how do you know me?"

"My name's Lynelle," She replied. She reached down into a black bag near her feet and placed a manila folder on the wooden table. "And I know you because you're part of my mission."

"What do you mean?" Lucy asked, her body going into fight or flight mode.

"Calm down, will you?" Lynelle sighed, opening the folder and taking a packet of paper out of it. "I don't mean that in a bad way." She placed three pieces of paper in front of Lucy. "Each of these documents is a piece of what describes our mission. This one is your profile: Lucy Heartfilia, giving your basic information such as: your age, date of birth, and your magic abilities." She pointed to the second document. "This is all my information, which I can promise is all true."

Lucy slid Lynelle's information closer to her- curious to know more about the girl that knew so much about her. According to the paper Lynelle's full name is Lynelle Katrina Hendrix and is nineteen years old. Her ethnic background is mixed with African-American and Caucasian. She is currently attending a school named Ohio State University pursing a degree in English with a minor in Communications. Her hometown is Battle Creek, Michigan though her current permanent address is in a town called Columbus within the state of Ohio.

"These places sound…interesting. And Ohio State University is a school?" Lucy questioned.

Lynelle nodded. "I was actually there before I had to rush over here to find you before something bad happened." Lynelle mouth tugged into a wry smile, "Because of you I had to skip an important exam. Thanks to you I might fail that class."

"It's not my fault!" Lucy huffed, glaring at Lynelle.

"Technically it is, but I guess I'll let it pass." She moved the third document closer to Lucy for the blond to read. "Now to explain why you're my mission." From the pocket of her jean shorts, Lynelle produced a key identical to Lucy's Gate Keeper key. "This key was passed down by my mother who received it from her mother. Our mission was to protect whoever had the key identical to ours. From what we gathered from the information the key gave us we knew it would be someone who had a special power, we just didn't really know the extent of it."

"That doesn't really explain how you know me," Lucy said.

"I'm getting to that, be patient!" Lynelle scowled. "You know, you're kind of a pain."

"Hey, that's rude! Who's says that to somebody they just met?"

"I do," Lynelle replied. "But to get back on track. I know you because my key tells me who possesses its twin." She motioned Lucy to put her Gate Keeper key on the table next to hers. The two keys glowed a light purple color as the rested beside each other. "For about ten years the twin of my key was left unattended. When you bought your key, my key began glowing and sent me your information."

"How did it do that?"

"It kind of projected it from here," Lynelle replied, pointing to the top of the key. "I made a document of it so I wouldn't lose it."

"Interesting."

"Any back to the mission-"

"Wait, I have a quick question: why did the key lay unused for ten years?"

Lynelle looked conflicted for a moment, unsure whether she should tell Lucy the key's past. "It's a story for another time."

"Why?" Lucy pushed, wanting to know the story behind the key she now possessed.

"Look, right now is not the time," Lynelle snapped, making Lucy's eyes widen from her sharp tone. "Right now we're on borrowed time, because when you first use the key you can't be over here for very long. The more you use the key to get over here the longer you'll be able to stay until soon there won't be a time restraint. Don't ask me why, because that's just how it is." She began to retie her wavy shoulder length a hair in a bun as she took a deep breath to calm herself, a habit she had acquired over the years. "As I was saying; the mission-"

However, Lynelle was unable to tell Lucy why she was needed- what the mission was. The large iron gate appeared behind Lucy, the doors flying open from an unknown force. A black hand appeared behind Lucy and grabbed her by the forearm- pulling her out of her chair and towards the gate.

"Hey, let go!" Lucy shouted, trying to fight against the vice grip of the shadow. "Lynelle!"

"You'll be able to come back in about three days," Lynelle said, trying to relay the important information as quickly as possible. "To open the gate to meet up with me you must summon it by saying: Open: Gate Keeper Lynelle. Got it?"

"What's the mission?" Lucy questioned, steadily being dragged closer to the gate- her heals almost over its border.

"I promise to tell you when you get back," Lynelle replied. "Just make sure you're back in three days."

Lucy nodded, before being forced into the gate- the doors slamming shut and the gate disappearing completely. Lynelle started at where it stood for a moment before standing up with a sigh. She wished she would have been able to explain the mission to Lucy in one sitting; however luck wasn't on her side. She began to pack her things up to head back school via her gate- it was the quickest way to get back to Ohio.

"I wonder if I'm even cut out for this job," Lynelle muttered, picking up her key from the table. It had been passed down to her from her mother after the accident. The accident that had took her mother's life and caused the twin to her key to be lost until now. "I don't have a choice though. If I don't do this mission, thousands of people will die and I'll be an outcast to my people." She clutched the key tightly, her mother's kind face appearing in her mind's eye. "And I'll be failing mom." She quickly repressed her emotions and shoved memories of her mother to the back of her mind. She held her key out in front of her, chanting: "I, Lynelle Katrina Hendrix order you to send me home. Open: Gate Keeper!"

An identical gate that had vanished minutes ago appeared before her. She stepped through the portal and soon arrived in her apartment on Ohio State University's campus. For a short time she could continue being a normal college student.

* * *

Lucy stumbled through the door way of the gate, disoriented and confused. What was the mission? But, above all: what the heck just happened?

"Lucy!"

Lucy jumped when she heard her name and felt someone grab her by her shoulders- turning her around. To her surprise she came face-to-face with Gray. "Gray? What are you doing in my apartment?"

Gray looked down at his friend with a mixture of concern and irritation in his dark eyes. "You've been gone for almost a week and you have the nerve to ask me why I'm at your apartment? You suddenly disappeared and we've been rotating shifts of who would stay here to wait for you and who would go out and search for you!"

Lucy's jaw dropped in shock. "I've been gone for almost a week!?"

Lucy's mind raced as her brown eyes locked with dark blue ones in utter panic. How the heck was she going to explain that she was in a different world?

* * *

Author's Corner:

Thank you to those who favorite/followed this story. It meant a lot to see that people enjoyed reading this! If you have any comments/questions/concerns just leave it in a review or PM me. Also, criticism is always appreciated.


	3. Chapter 3

[Roads Untraveled]

Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail, however the OCs in this story are mine.

* * *

Lucy felt horrible lying to her friends about her whereabouts, but she had no clue how to explain to them what happened to her. So, she gave a lame excuse that she took a job without notifying Mira or her teammates. She told them that she didn't mean to run off without telling anyone, but she was so excited that is slipped her mind.

"Now if only I had the rent money to prove I went on a job," Lucy sighed as she walked home from the guild. She had gotten a tongue lashing not only from her teammates, but from Master Makarov as well. They were all so concerned about her wellbeing that it hurt her heart knowing she had to leave them again in a few days without telling them.

_Why the heck is this mission so important? _ Lucy wondered as she balanced on the ledge just inches away from the river. _Maybe I should just get rid of the key._ She shook her head, dismissing the thought. _I can't do that…what if Lynelle really needs my help and I'm the only one who can do it? _

She was taken out of her thoughts by the sound of her name being called. Behind her Gray was jogging to catch up to her.

"Is something wrong?" Lucy questioned, pausing so the ice-make wizard could catch up to her.

"No, I just wanted to talk to you," He replied, shoving his hands into the pockets of his pants.

"Dare I ask where your shirt is?"

Gray looked down at his torso in shock. "I just had it on!"

Lucy laughed as he ran back down the street to grab is shirt. She still wondered how he could strip without noticing. He came back a few moments later fully clothed.

"So what did you want to talk about?" She asked, continuing her walk towards her apartment. She could only pray that it wasn't about her "mission".

"Well Natsu said you got a new key, but didn't know what it did," Gray replied. "Ever figure it out?"

_He couldn't have come all this way to ask me about my new key, _Lucy thought, looking at him suspiciously. _But I'll play along. _She shook her head, saying: "I've been so busy that I haven't gotten a chance to figure it out. It's so weird…I've never come across a key that I didn't know about." At least it was partially the truth.

"Shame you weren't able to use it on your mission then," He replied. "Oh yeah, were did you say you went?"

"I went to Oak Town, remember?" Lucy replied nervously. "It was a mission to retrieve an item for the requestor." Gray stopped walking, making Lucy look back at him with worry. "What's wrong?"

His bangs casted a shadow over his face as he replied: "Lucy, while you and Natsu were gone and up until two days ago I was in Oak Town because there was suspicion of the Phantom Lord Guild causing trouble there. That was the only request for that town and even if you were there I would have seen you." He brought his head up, his eyes boring into Lucy's. "I'm sorry Lucy, I didn't mean to attack you, but I want the truth. We've been through too much for you not to be honest with me and the rest of the guild."

Lucy stared at him in shock, afraid to speak. How had he picked apart her lie so fast? Her guilt grew at the cold look in his eyes, but as she continued to stare she could see worry and hurt. He was just worried about her. And he was right- they had been through a lot together.

"Come with me," She said softly. They walked the rest of the way to her apartment in silence. When she got there she took her newest key off the ring, holding it up for him to see. "This is my new Celestial Key, Gate Keeper."

"I thought you didn't know anything about the key."

"I still don't know much about it. I've only scratched the surface of it." She wasn't sure if she would be able to summon it, but it was worth a shot. She called upon it, and was surprised when it appeared in her living room.

"What is this thing?" Gray asked shock. "This thing is huge! Is it a Celestial Spirit?"

"I guess it is, but it's unlike any of the ones I've ever come across. Even Crux, a spirit that knows everything about the Celestial World, knew little about Gate Keeper," Lucy replied. She approached the gate, tugging at its handles, but it refused to open. "I guess I really do have to wait three days…"

"Three days until what?"

The blonde mage sighed, searching her brain for the right words. "Three days until I have to go back through this gate." She sent Gate Keeper away so she had room to sit. "It's kind of a long story…and you probably won't believe me."

"Try me."

Lucy told Gray everything that had happened to her in what felt like the last 24 hours. She told him about the crazy city, the weird girl, and what she had managed to understand of the mission she was supposed to be part of.

"So let me get this straight. Your new key opens a door to another realm in which a girl named Lynelle already knows you and you're part of a mission that she didn't have time to tell you, so you have go back in three days to get the rest of the story."

Lucy nodded. "That about covers it."

"Do you realize how crazy you sound?"

Lucy looked down at her lap. "I know I sound crazy, but that's the truth."

She heard Gray sigh. "I wish you would have told us that instead of lying. Honestly, your whole experience makes more sense then you going off on a mission without telling anyone."

"Are you saying I can't go on missions by myself?" She shouted in irritation.

Gray chuckled. "No, I'm saying that it's unlikely that you would."

Lucy huffed, but inside she was glad that Gray no longer seemed mad at her. Though, she was concerned about telling her other guild members. "Hey, do you think we could keep this between us? I'm not even sure if I want to go through with this mission, so I don't want to worry everyone."

"What if you're not given a choice?"

"I'll figure something out," She replied. "Please Gray, I'll tell them…just not right now."

Gray sighed, not liking the idea of hiding this from their guild. Lucy did have a point, however; why worry everyone now? "Alright, but only if you take me with you when you meet up with that girl again."

Lucy doubted Lynelle would be thrilled about Gray tagging long, but it was the only way her secret wouldn't be spilled to the guild. "Alright, fine. We'll try opening the gate Friday afternoon, and try to be back by Saturday morning our time. This is going to be tricky because time seems to move so much faster here."

Gray nodded. "We'll have to set a watch and try to match up the time difference."

Lucy hummed in approval, before standing up to stretch. "Well, now I have to take an actual job to cover for my rent that due soon. Do you want to see if we can get Natsu and Erza to take a quick job with us?"

Gray stood up as well, tugging on his shirt that he at some point discarded. "Sure, sounds good."

Lucy smiled. "Awesome! Oh and Gray, thank you so much for understanding."

Gray grinned back at her, lifting a hand to place on her blond hair. "No problem, I'm just looking out for you Luce."

Lucy escorted him to the front door where he took his leave. She was glad to get her worries off her chest and be able to confide in someone about the mess she found herself in. She was also glad that Gray was willing to go with her.

"I have a feeling that Lynelle is going to be really upset about him coming with me though," She muttered, picturing Lynelle's green eyes glaring daggers at her. She had a feeling that Lynelle could take her down if she had to.

* * *

[Three Days Later]

Lucy had scrapped up enough money during her two day mission with her team to cover her rent for a month and a half, which put her mind at ease. She didn't want to take any chances on staying on the other side of the gate for too long and end up being put out of her apartment.

"Are you sure you want to come?" Lucy asked her teammate, slinging her duffle bag over her shoulder. "There's nothing in it for you and you might get bored, and-"

"Lucy," Gray cut her off, pulling his white coat over his t-shirt. "I'm going and that's final. I already covered our tracks at the guild by putting us on a mission. Technically we can be gone for two weeks our time without anyone looking for us."

Lucy nodded; a day on the other side of the gate was about five days in Earthland. Though she did not anticipate being with Lynelle for more than a day, if the gate did not open for her, they could be stuck for a while. "Let's get going then." She raised the silver key, chanting: "Open: Gate Keeper Lynelle!"

The gate's doors opened wide without hesitation, allowing the two mages to walk through the dark tunnel. The gate opened up and placed them in an alleyway before closing. Cautiously, they moved into the streets.

"Is this where you were before?" Gray questioned, taking in the town they found themselves in. Red seemed to be a theme in the town because many decorations on the buildings and flags where red with what looked like a mascot in the shape of a nut.

"No," Lucy replied. "The buildings were a lot higher and the streets were a lot busier. We're in a totally different place."

"How are we going to find that girl you were talking about?"

"You don't need to," A voice replied behind them. The pair turned, coming face-to-face with Lynelle. "Luckily I was already heading over here for lunch. Plus, I'm done with classes." Lynelle cut her eyes over to Gray, scowling. "Who's this?"

"Gray Fullbuster, Fairy Tail wizard," Gray replied proudly.

Lynelle sighed, face-palming. "You seriously brought one of your friends along?"

"Sorry?" Lucy said nervously. Lynelle wasn't going to make Gray go back, was she? "I told him about how my time over here and what I knew of the mission that I'm being asked to do. He's here to help me if I run into trouble."

"Whatever," Lynelle replied, fighting the urge to send the ice-wizard back to where he came from. However, she knew if she wanted Lucy to cooperate she would have to keep Gray here. "Anyways, let's go to my apartment to talk."

"I thought you were getting lunch," Lucy said, jogging to catch up with Lynelle's fast pace.

"I'll just make us sandwiches," She replied. "Telling you the mission is much more important."

The trio walked almost thirty minutes across the campus of Ohio State University to get to Lynelle's one bedroom apartment. Lucy admired the beautiful campus and the people that walked through it. Never had she been in such a place and she found it extremely interesting.

On the far end of campus sat Lynelle's simple apartment. It had plain walls and basic furniture that come with the complex. Lynelle instructed the two to sit at the kitchen table while she prepared lunch.

"Is there a time difference between here and your realm?" Lynelle questioned as she pulled the necessary ingredients out of the refrigerator.

"Yeah a big one," Lucy replied. "A day here is a five days in Fiore."

"Five days?" Lynelle was surprised that the time difference was so big. She made a mental note to jot that down in her notebook. "That's interesting…My notes said that the difference was only about two days, not almost a week."

"So, about this mission you want Lucy to do," Gray began, wanting to get straight to the point.

"My, are you protective," Lynelle chuckled. "Are you her boyfriend?"

"Of course not!"

"He's not my boyfriend!"

Lucy was surprised that Lynelle was laughing so hard at their responses. When the girl finally pulled herself together she had to wipe tears from her eyes.

"You two are adorable," She said, placing the sandwiches in front of the mages. "You remind me of two of my friends who always denied they liked each other. And guess what, they're dating now!"

"Lynelle, the mission," Lucy pressed. Her face flushed at the very thought of dating Gray- finding it impossible to even fathom.

"Yes, yes I'm getting to that. No need to remind me," She replied, taking a seat. She pulled a notebook out of her backpack that was resting at her feet, opening to the first page.

"You gotta read the mission out of a notebook?" Gray muttered with his mouthful. Shouldn't she have such an important thing memorized? When he looked back over to the girl he almost jumped out of his skin at how harsh her glare was.

"I'm done playing around Fullbuster, listen up before I send you back," She replied, her cold and serious tone coming back into her voice. The girl that was just laughing with such a carefree attitude was completely gone. "Now like I was about to read off…" She took a deep breath, stealing her nerves. This was her first time have a potential partner and she knew if she didn't explain herself correctly then Lucy would not help her and she would be forced to go to extreme lengths to get Lucy on her side.

She looked down at her messy, cursive writing; reading off: "Lucy, you are here because you have in your possession the twin to my key, Gate Keeper. Our keys link us together so that we can work side-by-side in an effort to stop the raising problems that stem from the organization Black Gate. The organization wants to bring other worldly powers and devices to control and instill fear into the people of my world. My world is one of the only gates that does not have magic, people with special powers, or alchemy. Whatever you want to call a special power, we don't have it. That makes us vulnerable to attaches from those who have the capability to get through our gate." She paused, looking up to see that she still had Gray and Lucy's attention. Good, that meant her message was getting across to them. She continued on, saying: "What I need from you is to help me take down Black Gate whenever they attack the citizens of this world, or we get tips they are planning something. It could be anywhere and at any time. My people, the Keepers, are in small numbers. We have resorted to enlisting those from outside of our gate for help, though only after we check out their background via the item they pick up." Lynelle closed her notebook, looking Lucy in the eye. "I know this is a lot to take in, but I really need your help and with your Celestial powers and skills you are a perfect candidate. Please, help me take down Black Gate and protect the people of this world."

Lucy struggled to grasp onto what Lynelle just told her. Lynelle was basically begging for her help. Her heart went out to the young women, but that would mean she would have to pick up and leave all her friends from home behind. She couldn't just leave them like that. Lucy looked away from Lynelle's questioning gaze, saying: "I don't know…that's a lot of responsibility, and I can't just leave my friends like that."

Lynelle didn't expect Lucy to automatically join her side. She knew the young girl would need time to think and arrange things on her side, but Lynelle had limited time. She would be in serious trouble if she did not get a straight answer from Lucy soon. "I understand, however the situation is dire. Please consider helping at least. You can go and speak with your friends, but please come back soon with an answer."

"Are you seriously thinking about helping?" Gray asked his friend.

Lucy paused, not knowing how to answer. Instead she asked, "Is my world in danger as well?"

"Well, not in immediate danger, because they are focusing on taking our world first. Right now they are trying to take the magic from your world to use it here," Lynelle replied. "Or at least that's what I've been told. I'm just a foot soldier."

"It's just like in Edolas," Gray commented. "Except they must be doing it a lot differently than they did."

"Honestly, I don't know how they're taking your magic," Lynelle replied, not bothering to ask what Edolas was. "Our first mission, should you agree to help, is to find out."

"What if I don't accept?" Lucy inquired.

"Well then I report that to my boss and it's out of my hands," Lynelle replied. "We get further behind figuring out how to stop Black Gate and not only does our world suffer more, but eventually they will move to other Gates which includes yours."

Lucy stayed silent for a moment, mulling over the large amount of information that was given to her in the last ten minutes. "I'll think about it…I need to talk to my guild about this."

"Of course."

"What if I wanted to tag along?" Gray questioned.

"Well then I won't stop you, but you're not under any contract so I don't technically have to inform you of our missions or grant you access to our bases," Lynelle replied.

Gray scowled at her answer. He just wanted to be around to make sure Lucy would stay safe and he could talk her out of anything crazy. Honestly, he wanted to talk her out of helping Lynelle, but he knew that it had to be solely her choice.

Lucy stood up, picking up her duffle bag. "I'll give it some thought tonight, okay?" She paused, "Well actually however long it takes me to open the gate back up."

Lynelle nodded, standing up to clear the empty plates off the table. "That's all that I ask. When the gate is active again come back and speak with me and we'll go from there."

Lucy summoned Gate Keeper and quickly walked through the open doors.

"Lynelle," Gray started, waiting for her to turn and face him. "If Lucy decides to go through with this you can expect me here. I don't need to know the mission in order to protect her."

Lynelle couldn't help but smile at his dedication and serious look in his dark eyes. He reminded her so much of- _all right Lyn, bring it back in. No need to think about him. _She chastised herself. "Well Fullbuster, we'll just have to see what she decides. This job is a lot of work, so I hope you can keep up without knowing the details."

Gray smirked, "I can guarantee you I'll be fine." He turned and disappeared into the dark portal- the gate closing behind him.

Lynelle's smile faded from her face. All she could do was to wait and pray that Lucy would come back willing to help her.

* * *

Author's Corner:

[edited 4/24]

~Well there's the mission! Right now I'm focusing a lot on Gray and Lucy's friendship, before I do anything romantic.

~A special shout-shout to blog-heart-slover03 for being my first reviewer! It made me so happy when I saw it :)

~I hope all who read enjoyed this and if you have any comments/concerns/criticisms simply leave it in a review or PM. Have a great day!


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